MN Company Picks IN For Iron Pellet Plant

REYNOLDS, Ind. (AP) — A Minnesota company has selected a northern Indiana site for an iron ore pellet plant costing up to $350 million to build.

Magnetation announced Tuesday it would build the plant at the White County town of Reynolds where construction of a VeraSun ethanol plant was suspended five years ago.

Grand Rapids, Minn.-based Magnetation picked the site about 70 miles north of Indianapolis despite passage of a Minnesota law the company wanted to streamline environmental permitting for the new plant.

Magnetation says the plant should be operational by early 2015 with about 100 employees.

The company says the plant will process iron ore concentrate from northern Minnesota. The plant will produce iron ore pellets for West Chester, Ohio-based AK Steel Corp., which is investing nearly $300 million into a Magnetation subsidiary.